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USE OF THE IMPERFECT AND PRETERITE TENSES
The IMPERFECT tense should be used for:
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| 1) Descriptions in the past | Ejemplo: Hacía buen tiempo, el sol brillaba y el cielo era azúl = |
| 2) Repeated action in the past | Ejemplos (examples): Siempre se levantaba tarde durante las vacaciones = Cuando caía, lloraba = |
| 3) To express 'used to/was/were + ing' | Ejemplos: Leía el periódico cuando era más joven = Cocinaba (imperfecto) en la cocina, cuando ella volvió (preterito) a casa = |
| The PRETERITE tense should be used for: |
| 1) Completed usually short actions in the past | Ejemplo: Terminó sus deberes ayer = |
| 2) Often a series of short actions, each one of which takes the story a step further | Ejemplo: Paró el coche, cerró la puerta y caminó hacia su casa = |
IMPERFECT vs PRETERITE To tell a story in the past, the verbs must be examined in connection with each other. For each verb, decide which category it fits into: |
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| Preterite | Imperfect |
- New state of affairs when the action took place - The action was completed when another took place |
- Existing/interrupted state of affairs when something else happened - The action was going on when another took place |
Ejemplo: Los estudiantes estaban callados (imperfecto) cuando se abrió (preterito) la puerta =
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